Open-bedded vehicles having bottom-hinged tailgates have been known in the art for many years. In the substantially horizontal fully open position the tailgate permits cargo to be easily loaded into and unloaded from the bed of the vehicle. In the substantially vertical closed position the tailgate prevents the cargo from falling from the back of the vehicle while in transient. For years this tailgate configuration has been successfully utilized by the commercial and private sectors alike.
However, this classical tailgate design has one significant drawback, that of aerodynamic drag. When the vehicle is moving, the upright position of the tailgate can create an air dam which slows down the vehicle, or conversely, requires higher engine RPM and greater gasoline consumption to maintain the desired vehicle speed. In these days of energy consciousness, it is indeed proper to avoid such wasteful situations. To that end, many vehicle drivers have opted for the fabric type of tailgate, wherein the original factory-installed tailgate is totally removed and a webbed fabric netting is installed in its place. This design has the advantage of reducing aerodynamic drag, but has the decided disadvantages of (1) reduced strength in containing a cargo, (2) large holes through which small cargo item can freely pass, and (3) elimination of the flat tailgate surface for resting cargo items during loading and unloading.